The OECD Model Convention -- 1998 and Beyond; The Concept of Beneficial Ownership in Tax Treaties (IFA Congress Seminar Series Volume 23a)

Book Description

The OECD Model Tax Convention seminar is a regular feature of the annual IFA Congress. At the 1998 Congress, held in London, the seminar focused on the relationship between tax treaties and domestic laws in OECD member countries. After general surveys by two high-ranking OECD officials of relevant issues and developments in the Working Groups of the OECD's Committee of Fiscal Affairs during the course of the preceding year, the 1998 seminar offered two topics -- on the concept of beneficial ownership, and on the characterization of retirement income -- which were opened for discussion among panelists and attendees. The discussion shed significant light on the inter-relatedness of cross-border pensions, deferred compensation, and anti-abuse provisions as they appear in bilateral tax treaties, domestic laws, and the Model Convention. This handy volume reprints in full all the papers presented at this important seminar, along with the subsequent discussions. Practitioners and academics interested in the development and application of the OECD Model Tax Convention will appreciate its valuable insights.

Customer Reviews:

There should be a law against publishers.......1999-10-28

To force them to publish a full serie only ! I've been waiting for a LONG LONG time for the remaining volumes but they don't seem to ever come out or even be announced on the VIZ web-site.

THE GUYVER IS BETTER THAN SUPERMAN OR BATMAN.......1999-08-06

I HAVE THE GUYVER SERIES 1 TO 11. I THINK THAT IT'S THE BEST SHOW IN THE WORLD AND I HOPE TO GET MORE OF THE SERIES. KEEP THE GOOD WORK GUYS. IT'S AN ON YOUR TOES ACTION TO THE END; AND THERE RIGHT HIS BATTLE IS FAR FROM OVER.

GUYVER ROCKS.......1999-04-01

THE GUYVER IS MY HERO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The graphic novel is great, one of the best in the series........1999-03-15

This is a fantastic episode of the Guyver series. A series which still has many episodes to come which should be printed in this country. BRING GUYVER BACK THE BATTLE'S NOT FINISHED. By Jake Shone

A Worthy Finale.......1999-01-26

The Guyver series is always exciting, and this one is no exception. With great artwork, a great story, and enough double crosses and violence to fill an entire episode of the X-Files, this is a worthy finale to the Guyver series. And, yes, it is the final volume. The ending will blow you away.

Book Description

"12 Miles" is a multicultural ensemble comedy (a PG-13 story) that takes place primarily in South Florida, the Bahamas, and New Zealand. It is, above all, a people story that sits in front of horses and the horse business.

"12 Miles" has a lot of interwoven messages and spins a laugh-out-loud yarn about how one seemingly ordinary horse can cause chaos and upheaval in the lives of everyone he comes into contact with simply by his insistent stubbornness on living his life his own way.

The star of the story is Bonefish -- a gray gelding and wayward son of a former star racehorse who stubbornly refuses to race. The chaos Bopefish causes when he enters the lives of people from South Florida, Bimini (Bahamas), and both islands of New Zealand is both unpredictable and laugh-out-loud hilarious.

The four principle female characters in the story (the self-proclaimed "Posse") are all New Zealanders. The guys in the story are Americans. Destiny taps all on the shoulder and a spectacularly chaotic courtship process ensues.

Bonefish, meanwhile, spends most of his time in the Bahamas resting under a palm tree while watching his owner, Anvil Sanders, build small wooden boats by hand. Regardless whether Bonefish is in South Florida or the Bahamas, how he lives his life changes the life of everyone around him -- including the islanders.

"12 Miles" is ensemble storytelling at its romantic comedy finest. A good, positive, upbeat, creative tale with a happy ending.

Customer Reviews:

Where's my signed copy Ted?! :) Your Friend, Sherrie Engler.......2005-12-08

Well if this book is as good as "Critters, Fish & Other Troublemakers" it will be a must read. Ted has a way with words, and never meets a stranger! I'm glad to see you are still adding to the literary world with your fine words of wisdom and humor.

I hope to hear from you soon!

Sherrie Engler
www.horseartandgifts.com

Need a "feel good" read and a smile?.......2003-04-10

Weaving wonderful characters with beautiful venues and terrific pastimes, this book kindled warm memories of warm places and tugged on heartstrings stretched over some "tender territories". You needn't be a horse race fan to truly love this read, interact with the trials and comedies of relationships or be drawn into the storyline Ted Simendinger beautifully paints from Colorado, to South Beach, to Bimini and New Zealand. His insight into the frailties of Men vs. Women, and his ability to keep you hungry on multiple fronts, is marvelous.

Someone in this book will appeal to everyone, but my affinity for all the characters was established early on. It's a joy to see yourself, some of your past (and hopeful future) in a fast paced, witty and beautifully portrayed journey of men, women and beasts on a romp from flea markets to fame. If you've ever tasted long and unrequited love, thrown your fate to the winds of friendship and longed for life to come together in the most unforeseen of ways, then ride with the girls of the "Kiwi Posse" as they help fulfill the lives of unlikely American men and "Bonefish", the most lovable thoroughbred turned "beach-bum" you can imagine!

This book will help you follow your heart where you know it wants to lead you, have as much fun in as many places as you can, and realize that you need to fish whenever you can, love whenever you can and never give in to doubt that it really can be amazing in the end! Take a gamble, it's a sure thing!

Book Description

Stargate SG-1 premiered in 1997 and over the course of eight seasons, the show has developed its own unique mythological superstructure. It has blossomed into a series driven by fierce fan loyalty, with lively Internet discussion groups, the proliferation of textual poaching in fan fiction and art, and popular annual conventions. This book is a lively critical celebration of both Stargate and its spinoff, Atlantis. Its characters, themes, representations of sexuality and otherness are discussed, along with its interaction with fan fiction, its locations in Canada, its ideological framing of an American point-of-view, and tensions between its humanistic morality and military/political objectives in the shows plots. Included are an interview with a Stargate SG-1 writer and assessment of the fledgling Atlantis, an episode guide of the first eight seasons of Stargate SG-1 and the first season of Atlantis, and a glossary of terms.

Customer Reviews:

An in-depth and intelligent book for fans of the series........2006-07-16

Stan Beeler and Lisa Dickson have put together a nice compilation of academic essays that are lively, spirited and filled with enthusiasm for the Stargate Universe. They explore subjects as varied as gender roles in certain episodes to the economics of selling "Stargate" as a cultural pop icon. The complex symbolism of the series is addressed, but I felt that more analysis of the ties to ancient Egyptian and Celtic mythology would have rounded out this collection a bit more. Fascinating reading here for fans wishing to do a bit of thought searching, and the episode guide and glossary of terms are sure to be helpful to all. Highly Recommended.

Average customer rating:

Amazon's mistake -- not Plaskett's

Not the Queen's Pawn Attack

Queen's Pawn Attack Revealed
James Plaskett
Manufacturer: Batsford
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Chess | Board Games | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
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Beating the Open Games

How to Beat 1 D4: A Sound and Ambitious Repertoire Based on the Queen's Gambit Accepted

ASIN: 0713489707

Customer Reviews:

Amazon's mistake -- not Plaskett's.......2006-09-19

This is a 4 star book which I'm giving five, because the only other review unfairly pans the book for a mistake made by Amazon -- which is not the book's fault.

Plaskett is a chess author of questionable pedigree, having in the past authored some genuinely terrible books. His "Starting Out" book on attacking perhaps foremost among them. He has a poor reputation among chess authors and enthusiasts.

But it would be fairer, perhaphs, to call his work "uneven." In the case of the book under review here, he's done a fine job for the club-level player looking for an opening to shortcut his/her way around a lot of d-pawn theory. This is NOT a heavily theoretical tome. This is, instead, a book heavy on the ideas of the Queen's Bishop Attack. This may be the time to explain that THIS (and not "The Queen's Pawn Attack") is the subject of this book. 1. d4 d5, 2. Bg5!?... Also called the pseudo-Trompowsky, the Hodgson attack, and others.

The QBA is the perfect complement to the Trompowsky (1. d4 Nf6, 2. Bg5), for players looking to develop a decent, but theory-lite repertoire with the white pieces. The opening is not going to guarantee white winning chances in all lines -- indeed, in some, he'll have to settle for quick equality from black. Instead, white has to rely on knowing the territory better than black. And at the club level, this is not only quite possible, but probable. And Plaskett gives you the tools to do just that.

What's more, as far as I know, this is the ONLY book of ANY quality that addresses this subject matter! We're not going to revolutionize opening books with this effort, but if you're looking for a complement to that Tromp of yours, this is the only game in town. And Plaskett does a plenty-good-enough job with it. Thumb's up to Plaskett, thumb's down to Amazon for screwing up the title.

Not the Queen's Pawn Attack.......2005-12-17

I must admit to being totally confused here. I ordered a book with the supposed title of Queen's Pawn Attack Revealed by James Plaskett and received a book entitled The Queen's Bishop Attack Revealed. Instead of it being 160 pages it's 218. The opening is 1. d4, d5 1. Bg5. Now maybe I'm just uninformed and the Queen's Pawn Attack and the Queen's Bishop Attack are the same opening. But if the book's title is The Queen's Bishop Attack then that's how it should be listed! I haven't had time to read the book as I only just received it. Maybe it's a very good book, but only one star due to the deceptive title under which the book is being advertised.

Book Description

Are you an aspiring game developer with a great idea, but no practical knowledge for turning that idea into reality? 3D Game Programming All in One is the comprehensive guide you need! This new edition updates the original coverage with the latest version of Torque from GarageGames, and provides the very best tools available to the Indie game maker. This hands-on book not only teaches the technical skills behind 3D game programming, but also provides you with the practical experience you need to create your own games. As you create a first-person shooter, you'll cover the techniques behind the programming, textures, and models that go into successful game creation. You'll also cover the Torque Engine and will learn how to integrate sound and music into your game. 3D Game Programming All in One provides you with the training, experience, and tools you need to turn your dreams of game creation into reality!

Customer Reviews:

3D Game Scripting with Torque Engine.......2007-09-08

DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK UNLESS ALL YOU WANT TO LEARN ABOUT IS THE TORQUE ENGINE. TORQUE.

Torque, Torque, Torque, Torque, Torque, Torque, Torque, Torque... Annoying isn't it? HA! Try reading this book.

It is NOT "all in one" it is "Torque in one". Torque. Torque is all this this dude talks about. He's completely & utterly obsessed with Torque. He should marry the freakin' engine.

3D Game Scripting with the Torque Engine is what this book should be called, because that is ALL this book is about. Torque. The title is completely misleading. I was highly disappointed with this book. Torque.

3D Game Programming All in One.......2007-07-13

Book arrived in new condition in a short period of time. I was very satisfied with the transaction

I like this book quite alot.......2007-05-17

I'm a beginner and do work with Torque as my hobby. But i certainly like this book - I'm no programmer but this book is quite excellent. I'm not trying to [...] u :D This is good. I would love it move if it had colorfull pictures!!! And more decent games as examples but yeah wahtever!!! in fact i would have to pay mroe for that. Ah yeah the price is good for such book. In fact i just finished 4 chapters so i can't say much more than that but already it helped me understand hell lots.

Do Not Buy the Second Edition of This Book.......2007-03-27

The CD does not match the book text. The first edition may have been a fine book, but this edition has not been edited to match the companion CD. I am very sorry I have bought it.

awesome.......2007-03-24

This book was just what i was looking for. Right to the point with no walkarounds!

Game Programming All in One, Second Edition

Average customer rating:

An excelent learning tool.
a pretty good book
I would advise against it
software did not work
Very informative

Game Programming All in One, Second Edition
Jonathan S. Harbour
Manufacturer: Course Technology PTR
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Programming | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 1592003834

Book Description

Create your own high-caliber games with some of the same tools used by professional game developers! If you have a working knowledge of C or C++, then "Game Programming All in One, 2nd Edition" can get you started on your journey. It uses hands-on projects to explain each new subject and includes many sample programs to reinforce the material in each chapter. Begin by learning about cross-platform game programming, writing code that will run under Windows®, Linux®, Mac OS® X, and many other systems. Enhance your skills by working through the core features of the Allegro game library and writing code to load images, manipulate sprites, scroll the background, use double-buffering, read a joystick, detect collisions, and implement other core features of any game. You will gain experience by creating a complete game and adding features to it in each new chapter. You will also learn how to write a scrolling platform game and a vertical shooter.

Customer Reviews:

An excelent learning tool........2007-02-27

Harbour presents everything in a simple manner with very little presumptions. He provides useful information on entering the game industry and making money from your games. Although the cd can have some trouble installing, it still makes for an exceptional learning tool.

a pretty good book.......2007-02-16

I think this is a great starting point for someone who already knows the basics of c++ and wants to learn the allegro library. The examples are pretty good and progress in a logical way.

I would advise against it.......2007-02-13

I first would like to say that this book is most definitely not for people with no programming experience (but you could have figured that out from the rest of the reviews)

I work at a video game studio as a scripter and am working my way up to become a programmer. I picked this book up a while back and just got around to opening it a few weeks back. The first section of the book was excellent in helping me understand the programming concepts used in video game development. But only because I was able to identify the absurd amount of syntax errors in the example that a beginner wouldn't.

I only had this book on my desk for two days before I was shamed into putting it far back in one of my drawers. It seemed that every programmer who noticed this book had something bad to say about it. Criticism of the choice to use DirectX to teach beginners how to program graphics have been the most popular. That is why I can't say anything about the book's effectiveness past the first section (so that's what gets 3 stars).

The review below entitled "A note from the author" below is from the author of the second edition about the second edition, mistakenly put on the first edition's page. That one sounds better but considering the author can't even do a shameless plug for his own book correctly... I wouldn't risk it.

software did not work.......2007-01-08

first, the book was great . organized in text book fashion it would be great for a high school level course on game programming. Well organized and an easy read. The quizzes at the end of each chapter make for a good way to make sure you understood the material. (Note it Is not a reference book.. It is a tutorial)

What it is not, is a course on programming in 'c/c++' be warned. you either need to program in 'c' or be taking a course in 'c'. this is quite a departure from the first edition. This is explained in the books description so it is not false advertising or anything but unless you program in `c' or perhaps have a beginners `c' tutorial book you might get lost.

for me the problem is/was the software on the disk did not work on any of my computers. If you have access to a working c/c++ compiler this is not much of a problem, if not then it will be. about a dozen calls to the publisher remain un answered..

for the price the book is worth it. but if your new to programming and do not have access to your own compiler you may not get much use out of it.

one final thought. the book teaches the game engine allegro. It teaches only the 2d controls and functions - which I think is fine.. Allegro has tons of 3d functionality.. you will want to get a supplemental guide for this. One thing I disagree with the author on is that the trend in gaming is to 3d and that should have been explored.. Perhaps material for a third edition or an second course.

Very informative.......2007-01-06

I bought this for my 15 year old son. He says it is very informative.

Book Description

This is the third edition of Readings in Medieval History - Volume II: The Later Middle Ages. A third edition is also available for Readings in Medieval History - Volume I: The Early Middle Ages, and for the combined, one-volume collection Readings in Medieval History. These books are the most successful and most highly-praised collection of source materials on the medieval period.

Four principles guide the selection of materials. First, entire documents are included wherever possible, not snippets. Second, texts are grouped to form dossiers in which the individual documents relate to one another, reflecting the practice of historians. Third, most of the documents have been the subject of significant scholarship. And fourth, raw material for many types of historical investigations is provided; they may be used equally by the political historian, the social historian, the cultural historian or the historian of mentalities.

The third edition of Readings in Medieval History - Volume II: The Later Middle Ages includes an updated Preface and a new section, "The Iberian Peninsula," containing material that deals with Jews, Muslims, and Heretics. The text has also been newly typeset, making the book more readable, and in response to suggestions concerning the weight of the book, a lighter paper is being used. The result is a book that is overall more user friendly.

Customer Reviews:

Nice collection.......2007-02-13

Read it and weep at how far the West has deteriorated since Medieval times.

How much the West has lost.......2007-02-13

The book is intended to give the reader an idea of how people thought in Medieval times, which it does. It is also a sad commentary on how much of its values and backbone the West has lost since then.

Medieval History- packaged without filler.......2006-11-25

Readings in Medieval History is a terrific book for a number of reasons. Many students today encounter only secondary source materials in their history courses; in other words, students are immediately presented with a particular historian's opinion of a given source document before he or she is allowed to dive into the readings themselves. Secondary text books frame (and limit) one's readings with phrases such as "the Anglo-Saxon chronicle was significant because..." Patrick Geary presents the material in their raw form and allows the reader to draw his or her own significance.

This text allows the student of history to read primary documents, which are mostly presented unabridged, exactly as they were written by their medieval authors. Other than the inherent problems of translation (most of these texts were writen in medieval Latin, Old English, French, or other vernaculars) this book offers the most direct contact with the past that an individual can reasonably hope for. This book allows you to hear the medieval voice without modern contextual hindrances. Readings in Medieval History situates its wonderful texts in their own particular cultural milieu, and allows the reader to appreciate these documents in their own right.

Geary Puts the Medieval Back In the Middle Ages.......2000-07-11

I had the opportunity to use this book as a text for a course while studying at UC Riverside. It serves well as a secondary souce; for those unfamiliar with the term, this kind of source is historical documentation written by contemporaries. So it contains accounts written written by medieval Europeans. It does primarily contain translated documents, in modern english, from Western Europe. Readers will find all the usual suspects and many more: Tacitus, Charlemagne, Gregory of Tours, King Louis the Ninth, King John, and a plethora of papal thought. Additional gems include the memoirs of a Byzantine princess, the Domesday book, the Concordant of Worms, and the interpretations of Aristotle by the Muslim philosopher Siegbert (my favorite). Naturally, the writings are challenging to read for those who are unfamiliar with medieval prose and style, but as a student I found reading the documents remarkably similar to reading today's Common Law documents. For anyone who is interested in building synapses geared for the study of law, this thick book is a springboard as most of its documents pertain to canon law, divine law, theology, Roman law, and English law. Worth your pennies!

The Middle Ages, Volume II, Readings in Medieval History

Average customer rating:

Great
Professor Tierney's research pays off for you!

The Middle Ages, Volume II, Readings in Medieval History
Brian Tierney
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0073032905

Book Description

This book is a collection of 39 essays by distinguished historians on a wide variety of medieval topics. The material is presented in roughly chronological order, and within each period the essays are grouped around a particular theme (eg, "Feudal Society," "Women and Family"). Classic and contemporary essays and authors are included to present many different approaches to medieval history.

Customer Reviews:

Great.......2005-10-19

The book was in great condition, it was a older version then we used in class, but it stil works. It also arrived a little later then I was hoping for.

Professor Tierney's research pays off for you!.......2002-05-20

Brian Tierney has collected so many excellent primary sources. If you are interested in what people of that time thought about or wrote, by all means get anything by Tierney. If you are a history student or teacher, these gems will enliven the discussion in the classroom and will even challenge your ideas of modernity. Enjoy!

Average customer rating:

The Middle Ages, Volume II: Readings in Medieval History
Brian Tierney
Manufacturer: Mcgraw-Hill College
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

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The Middle Ages, Volume I, Sources of Medieval History

ASIN: 0070646120

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The Middle Ages Volume II: Readings in Medieval History
Brian Tierney
Manufacturer: Alfred A. Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OITIFG

Average customer rating:

The Middle Ages Volume II Readings in Medieval History
Brian Tierney
Manufacturer: Knopf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OSCDJO

Book Description

In dealing with a wide range of aspects of the life, activities, and customs of the Late Bronze Age Hittite world, this book complements the treatment of Hittite military and political history presented by the author in The Kingdom of the Hittites (OUP, 1998). It aims to convey to the reader a sense of what it was like to live amongst the people of the Hittite world, to participate in their celebrations, to share their crises, to meet them in the streets of the capital or in their homes, to experience the sights, sounds, and smells of a healing ritual, to attend an audience with the Great King, and to follow his progress in festival processions to the holy places of the Hittite land. Through quotations from the original sources and through the word pictures to which these give rise, the book aims at recreating, as far as is possible, the daily lives and experiences of a people who for a time became the supreme political and military power in the ancient Near East.

Customer Reviews:

life of the ancient Hittite civilization.......2006-08-07

one of the best books for the life of the ancient Hittite civilization.this book like his previous work of; "The Kingdom of the Hittites" used the latest researches about the subject.

The best recent survey of the subject in English.......2004-11-30

Trevor Bryce is a highly regarded specialist in Hittite history. His scholarly articles focus on problems of Hittite history, mainly matters affecting the western half of the Anatolian peninsula -- Ahhiyawa and the Lycians. The first of his two recent books published by Oxford (of which this is the second), entitled "The Kingdom of the Hittites", shows the fruit of his close engagement with the best and latest research. In this second book, the subject of which is not quite as much his specialty, Bryce has written a lively and accurate account of what life was like in the ancient Hittite world (c. 1650-1150 BC). The chapter headings indicate his approach, which personalizes the subject matter. Instead of chapter headings like "Law", "Religion", "Art", "literature", etc., Bryce focuses on the person who operates in these spheres: scribes, priests, judges, farmers, craftsmen. In so doing he allows even old hands in his discipline to appreciate the information they already possess as seen in a new light, and makes comprehending the subject easier for first-time students. Oxford University Press has not cluttered the page with footnotes, but ample documentation is available in unabtrusive endnotes. For a hardback edition the rice too is reasonable, chiefly because the press did not indulge in glossy plates or maps. Readers who feel the need for more graphics should also buy J. G. Macqueen's book "The Hittites" which has a plethora of plates. Highly recommended for readers from high school through retirement home.

Average customer rating:

Life and Society in the Hittite World

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Similar Items:

The Kingdom of the Hittites

ASIN: 0199260478

Life and Society in the Hittite World.(Book Review): An article from: The Journal of the American Oriental Society

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Life and Society in the Hittite World.(Book Review): An article from: The Journal of the American Oriental Society
Richard Beal
Manufacturer: American Oriental Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B000ALOSTS
Release Date: 2006-07-14

Book Description

This digital document is an article from The Journal of the American Oriental Society, published by American Oriental Society on January 1, 2004. The length of the article is 3397 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Life and Society in the Hittite World.(Book Review)
Author: Richard Beal
Publication: The Journal of the American Oriental Society (Refereed)
Date: January 1, 2004
Publisher: American Oriental Society
Volume: 124 Issue: 1 Page: 148(5)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

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Life And Society In The Hittite World
Trevor Bryce
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKTOO4

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Life and Society in the Hittite World

Manufacturer: OXFORD UNIVERSITY PR
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GUEWQ2

Amazon.com's Best of 2001

Mummies fascinate us. As we peer at their withered flesh, we are glimpsing a type of immortality. Heather Pringle tells the stories of some of these "frail elders"--and the scientists who study them--in The Mummy Congress.

Pringle details the tension between the preservationists, who want to protect the ancient dead and refuse to unwrap them, and the dissectionists, who see mummies as a repository of scientific data waiting to be studied. She also introduces the reader to the preserved dead from around the world--from the bog bodies of northern Europe to the mysterious Caucasian-looking mummies from China's Tarim Basin, from Egyptians in linen shrouds to incorruptible Christian saints, and from Lenin in his Moscow mausoleum to Incan children found on Andean mountaintops.

Peppered with fascinating snippets of information--for example, for centuries artists were sold on a pigment called "mummy," a transparent brown made from ground-up mummies--The Mummy Congress makes for lively, if somewhat ghoulish reading. Highly recommended. --Sunny Delaney

Book Description

When acclaimed science journalist Heather Pringle was dispatched to a remote part of northern Chile to cover a little-known scientific conference, she found herself in the midst of the most passionate gathering of her working life -- dozens of mummy experts lodged in a rambling seaside hotel, battling over the implications of their latest discoveries. Infected with their mania, Pringle spent the next year circling the globe, stopping in to visit the leading scientists so she could see firsthand the breathtaking delicacy and unexpected importance of their work.

In The Mummy Congress, she recounts the intriguing findings from her travels, bringing to life the hitherto unknown worlds of the long-dead, and revealing what mummies have to tell us about ourselves. Pringle's journeys lead her to the lifelike remains of medieval saints entombed in Italy's grand cathedrals, eerily preserved bog bodies in the Netherlands bearing signs of violent and untimely slaughter, and frozen Inca princess glimpsed for the first time atop icy mountains. She learns of the extraordinary skills of ancient Egyptian embalmers capable of preserving bodies, in the words of one mummy expert, "until the end of time"; of the horrifying sacrifices made by ancient South Americans to pacify their gods; and of the weird mummified parasites, preserved in the guts of millennia-old bodies, that still wreak havoc across the world today.

Ranging from the famous excavation of Tutankhamen to tales of ascetic Japanese monks trying to mummify themselves, and from the Russians' terrified attempts to embalm the body of Stalin to the fleeting craze for public mummy unwrappings in nineteenth-century New Orleans, The Mummy Congress demonstrates that our own obsession with the preserved dead has a long and bizarre history. Packed with extraordinary stories and narrated with great humor and verve, The Mummy Congress is a compelling and entertaining journey into the world of the everlasting dead.

Customer Reviews:

Are You My Mummy?.......2007-09-17

I kept spotting this book as I browsed the bargain books at the local mega-bookseller. I'm normally leery of books with mummies and Egyptian stuff on the cover as most of them seem to be pretty thin on content and real heavy on the same old sensationalist or quasi-New Age stuff with a handful of glossy and colourful images intended to get the rubes to buy in. The price seemed right (under $5.00) so I decided to see what the back cover had to say about the content. The back of the Fourth Estate paperback didn't tell me much, but on the other hand it didn't discourage me from looking inside the book either.

From the first page: Heather Pringle is a journalist and writer who has written on archeology and ancient cultures in numerous magazines including Discover, National Geographic Traveller, New Scientist, Science and Geo. She is also the author of two books, including In Search of Ancient North America. She lives in Vancouver, Canada.

That pretty much sold me - a solid non-fiction science writer.

The Mummy Congress starts with the convening of Third World Congress on Mummy Studies in Arica, Chile and gives us a good sense that this small field of study is made up of very dedicated people that share the same (almost maniacal) interest in mummies. Absent seem to be the snake oil salesmen, taking the liberty of calling themselves Egyptologists, we are more familiar with. Pringle uses the characters at the congress as her jumping off point for her narrative about the various kinds of mummies that exist, the way they are discovered, preserved, studied and at times desecrated for profit.

Some of the things you will learn about while reading:

* The dissection of mummies in Egypt where they are more plentiful than anywhere else and where the bits and pieces of those not fortunate enough to have celebrity mummy status end up.
* Studies of mummies for ancient drug use and parasites that inhabited them while alive.
* Origins of the "Bog People" and their ritual killing before being tossed into bogs.
* Controversies over Caucasian looking mummies discovered in Northern China dating from before Europeans officially made any trips that far east.
* The origin of the word "mummy" and it's roots in the for profit capitalization of ground up mummy bits packaged as medicines, elixirs and artists paint.
* Famous sideshow proprietors of mummified remains and their exhibitions.
* The Vatican's interest in the study of mummified remains.
* The mummification of Communist leaders.

An overall well written book that manages to convey lots of factual information (with a meaty bibliography and a good index) while keeping the reader entertained with colourful characters and vivid descriptions of this fascinating field of study that spans the entire globe. If you like non-fiction and/or mummies this is a great read. I didn't find any pitfalls in this book, except for the chapter on parasites which gave me the creeps while reading it in the middle of the night.

Good but not great.......2005-09-24

"The Mummy Congress" narrates the study of mummies around the world, with its takeoff point being a meeting of mummy experts at the edge of Chile's Atacama desert. Pringle travels, interviews, observes, researches and reports. There are far more mummies around, including some being created even today, than you would have dreamed of. In addition to the Egyptian mummies --so plentiful they are almost without value -- there are "incorruptible" saints, bodies occasionally preserved in clayey English graves, dried natives of the Atacama desert, and Caucasian-seeming mummies that the Chinese government has placed off limits to investigators. The book will interest history buffs, chemists (because the preservation methods vary) and trivia fans. Much of what she learns and tells us is indeed interesting, but not riveting. There is no central person whose story is compelling; it is not like Dava Sobel's "Longitude", which followed the lifetime quest of John Harrison to create the world's first chronometer. The book is handsomely produced, with excellent photographs. It's the sort of thing you will like if you like this sort of thing. (Abraham Lincoln joke.)

Good introduction to the topic.......2003-12-13

The writer brings a journalistic approach to the topic of mummies and the sub-title of the book clearly defines the multiple angles she chose to follow. She covers a great deal of territory, both geographically (all the continents except Antarctica) historically, psychologically and morally.

In a sense this is almost an "Encyclopedia of the Mummy" because it covers so many aspects of mummy hunting, dissecting and preserving. Most mummy hunters seem obsessed by their quest. They may be after mummies for scientific, historic, theatric or religious reasons, but hunt them they must. This raises moral issues; after all these were once human beings that we are putting on display, slicing for DNA or just carting off to some museums storage room. Can we justify it if we, say, understand some disease better after the research? Or is it just voyeurism for us all to know what the Iceman ate for his last meal?

The writer introduces us to individual mummy hunters, strong characters all, and the unusual places they work. Her writing is clear and vivid, if a trifle long. She is at her best describing the moral and psychological issues surrounding our fascination with mummies and the way they relate to our own mortality anf hopes for immmortality.

Good introductory book.......2003-12-13

Can't put it down!!!.......2002-07-16

This is a terrific book with lots of information and suspense. I am always wondering what is going to be revealed next. I enjoyed the discussion/debate of the social issues the members of the mummy congress face. HP is very frank about how she feels on these issues, but she does a good job of remaining objective. She also has a highly readable style which makes the book very enjoyable.

Heather Pringle - The Mummy Congress: Science, Obsession And The Everlasting Dead

Average customer rating:

Heather Pringle - The Mummy Congress: Science, Obsession And The Everlasting Dead
Heather Pringle
Manufacturer: Fourth Estate
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000P9S9UE

Average customer rating:

Mummy Congress: Science, Obsession, and the Everlasting Dead
Heather Pringle
Manufacturer: BARNES & NOBLE BOOKS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OLMR92

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